TRDA Spotlight

C.A.S.T. Notes

Alumni News

FROM RACHEL KLEIMAN:

After expending a lot of effort job-hunting during my senior year at GW and the first weeks out of school, I can proudly say I have accepted the Group Sales and Tourism Assistant position at the New York City Ballet. The process that led me to this opportunity was full of highs and lows: following my heart to turn down a non-dance related job offer in Washington to accept a temporary Patron Relations position at Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York, while continuing to search for long-term options, gave me a great deal of anxiety. Nevertheless, I have embraced and enjoyed every moment at Ailey, and the surge of energy I receive when I am immersed in New York and its dance community helped me to power through the stresses of uncertainty. Although my current supervisor hoped I could stay at Ailey, there were no available permanent opportunities there when I received the offer from the NYCB, so she encouraged me to accept this new job. I am grateful for the contacts I have already made in the New York dance world and for the guidance I have received from my mentors at GW during my search.

It is great to know that other GW Dance alumni have been able to find their niche in New York’s dance scene. A coffee date with an alum who has been proactive in presenting her choreography in the City reminded me of the benefits of pursuing a double major in Dance and Political Science at GW; specifically, the opportunity to develop my creativity and dance skills while enhancing my knowledge in other fields of study. The meeting also reassured me that I have the power to make time to continue my dance education, network with dance professionals, and even explore performance opportunities. While my current commute from home to New York is long and tiring, I plan to take advantage of free Ailey classes in my remaining time there, while getting into a routine of taking at least 2-3 classes per week. I also am determined to be more proactive in making connections with dance teachers and other students to grow my opportunities to continue performing and developing my technique.

As is my nature, I must admit that finding the time for my greatest passion, dance, while working a full-time job does appear daunting. However, I am excited that the “day” job is in the dance world, and, if I have learned anything from my time at GW (especially during my hectic final year while choreographing my Honors thesis), it is to take life one day at a time, knowing that I have a fantastic support system and that there is always a place for me in dance.

FROM LYDIA MOKDESSI:

Benjamin and i have been in process since june on an experimental performance work titled no subject lineage / a dance for them. an early iteration was presented in September as part of Triskelion Arts' COLLABFEST and we are very excited to announce four upcoming showings:

February 6 // bax upstart festival, 8pm

March 13-14 // triskelion arts split bill, 730pm

April 14 // dixon place split bill, 730pm

May 29 // fivemyles gallery, 8pm

some words:

no subject lineage / a dance for them is a live-composed dance theatre work-in-progress by registered domestic partners investigating ancestral/individual/shared lineage and drawing content from family histories & origin myths, artifacts of personal pasts, and evidence of imprints left over five years of partnership. we are working with a mutable shared vocabulary of choreography & monologues and inventing performative structures that allow for live-composition.